Eating wild rabbit

[ghunther]

Hi guys,

I'm sure one of you seasoned hunters can educate a city boy

I was talking about shooting/eating wild rabbit with a girl at work the other day and I'm told that apparently they're no good.

Not because of a phobia thing, it's not about "ewww nature" but just because of the harder conditions and poor hygiene in nature they're unclean and stink which carries into the meat?

She tells me this though having just been told it by someone else, she's not an outdoors kind of girl so I don't know how much faith I put in her information.

What's the story?

Cheers.

[DaleH]

I haven't tried domestic rabbits but wild ones don't taste too bad - My father use to love it - roasted, stewed didn't matter.
They don't taste like chicken and they do smell when you clean them (as do all animals when you go through the same process).

[lole]

They smell like any wild animal, it doesn't mean their meat is tainted with stench though.

More likely a pierced gut or something has given someone a bad encounter who's then told her they stick.

Once they're cleanly gutted, skinned etc., meat is meat.

[Member-Deleted]

This is the same story I read on the other forum about 7months ago. Not the same bloke is it?

[Warrigul]

Hi guys,

I'm sure one of you seasoned hunters can educate a city boy

I was talking about shooting/eating wild rabbit with a girl at work the other day and I'm told that apparently they're no good.

Not because of a phobia thing, it's not about "ewww nature" but just because of the harder conditions and poor hygiene in nature they're unclean and stink which carries into the meat?

She tells me this though having just been told it by someone else, she's not an outdoors kind of girl so I don't know how much faith I put in her information.

What's the story?

Cheers.

Nope she is absolutely right, rotten horrible stinky things they are. You should stop eating them straight away and send them to me for proper disposal.

[Pilch]

They spend their days ruffling around in the dirt, mud and rain so no surprised that their fur smells.

People are too used to buying a trimmed steak in a packet ready to go I suppose, and don't know what/where it actually comes from.

If she thinks rabbits smell, how good does she imagine the cow slaughterhouse smells that her steaks at Safeway come from?

[ghunther]

This is the same story I read on the other forum about 7months ago. Not the same bloke is it?

Nah, this was chatting with a girl at work.

I actually had a real life conversation for once, not a forum one

[Lorgar]

I actually had a real life conversation for once, not a forum one

You had a what now?

[Lorgar]

Nope she is absolutely right, rotten horrible stinky things they are. You should stop eating them straight away and send them to me for proper disposal.

I sense some trickery here

[Member-Deleted]

I don't know if any of you blokes realize but there is a gland that you can cut out towards the ass that takes that sligh smell away.

[on_one_wheel]

And that there folks is whats wrong with the world.... too many people who dont know where thier food comes from. Wild rabbits are fine to eat... very fine indeed.

I have never heared of anyone getting sick, but I won't keep rabbits with Myxomatosis, Calicivirus or ones that have been body shot, I also pay close attention to the internals and won't eat rabbits that don't look right inside ie spots, sists and pus.

[Warrigul]

And that there folks is whats wrong with the world.... too many people who dont know where thier food comes from. Wild rabbits are fine to eat... very fine indeed.

I have never heared of anyone getting sick, but I won't keep rabbits with Myxomatosis, Calicivirus or ones that have been body shot, I also pay close attention to the internals and won't eat rabbits that don't look right inside ie spots, sists and pus.

I am really fussy and if there is any shadowing ditch them.

My mum is very fussy and won't take a rabbit unless it has its kidneys present...

My mum won't eat milky does either...

Says they taste different...

She has also been known to say that her ever loving son only feeds them to the dog...

[on_one_wheel]

Yep I keep the kidneys in to, but not for my own deasese inspection ( i'v already checked that ) I keep em in for flavour.

Cant say i'v noticed the differnce between milky doe's and dry ones but I guess they might taste different from putting nutrition into the milk.

I put a milky doe in the freezer yesterday, I will mark the bag and pay close attention to its taste. I'll eat the lot even bucks.

[Warrigul]

Yep I keep the kidneys in to, but not for my own deasese inspection ( i'v already checked that ) I keep em in for flavour.

Cant say i'v noticed the differnce between milky doe's and dry ones but I guess they might taste different from putting nutrition into the milk.

I put a milky doe in the freezer yesterday, I will mark the bag and pay close attention to its taste. I'll eat the lot even bucks.

Mum has never been able to tell the difference either, she has eaten a few unknowingly over the years.

[on_one_wheel]

ha ha.... thats the spirit.

[ebr love]

Mum has never been able to tell the difference either, she has eaten a few unknowingly over the years.

Ha ha.

And you can always keep that gem up your sleeve to drop on her if she starts giving you too much brief over bring her bad food in the future

[ghunther]

I have never heared of anyone getting sick, but I won't keep rabbits with Myxomatosis, Calicivirus or ones that have been body shot, I also pay close attention to the internals and won't eat rabbits that don't look right inside ie spots, sists and pus.

All makes sense.

I didn't doubt that there would be some that aren't suitable for eating, but figured some had to be ok.

We managed to get by for a few million years without Coles supermarkets so we were eating something

Thanks all, I figured she didn't really know what she was talking about

[Oldbloke]

Is it true that if you soak them in salt and vinegar over night it leaches out most of the gamey taste?

[Member-Deleted]

Is it true that if you soak them in salt and vinegar over night it leaches out most of the gamey taste?

Milk

[combo12]

Some people actually like the 'gamey' taste but if you want a great rabbit to casserole/stew (you never know how old and tough they are so forget about roasting them) make sure you remove the two anal glands from buck rabbits when you gut them out. When it comes to preparing to cook, cut into pieces and soak in salted water with 1Tbsn vinegar/litre added overnight in the fridge. Can add a few cloves and a dash of Worcestershire sauce to the liquid to add flavour. Some people soak them in milk but I have no experience of that. Regardless, next day, remove the rabbit pieces from the soaking liquid and cook them for however long it takes for the meat to start to fall off the bones. Winner every time!

[combo12]

Some people actually like the 'gamey' taste but if you want a great rabbit to casserole/stew (you never know how old and tough they are so forget about roasting them) make sure you remove the two anal glands from buck rabbits when you gut them out. When it comes to preparing to cook, cut into pieces and soak in salted water with 1Tbsn vinegar/litre added overnight in the fridge. Can add a few cloves and a dash of Worcestershire sauce to the liquid to add flavour. Some people soak them in milk but I have no experience of that. Regardless, next day, remove the rabbit pieces from the soaking liquid and cook them for however long it takes for the meat to start to fall off the bones. Winner every time!

[gazza]

My mates pop had a guard dog business and they used to boil up heaps of rabbits for the dogs. He can't stand them now. I like them, used to eat heaps in N.Z. Not hard to make anything taste good these days just add google and spice.

[Oldbloke]

Thanks combo12,

Ill try that perhaps next week. My wife likes the gamey taste but I'm not fond of it.

[AusC]

Slow cooked rabbit in a stew tastes gooood.

[ghunther]

Ill try that perhaps next week. My wife likes the gamey taste but I'm not fond of it.

I've gotta say I'm not a huge fan of it either. I can do it every once and a while, on a shoot it's in the spirit of things which is fun, but I'd be happy with a beef steak any day

[on_one_wheel]

How about hares ... Thats one i'v never bothered to eat. Anyone tried them ?



Two that fell to the 12 gauge yesterday, I was always told never shoot a hare unless you can shoot its partner to.

[Hennie Dreyer]

This discussion makes me remember the story told by one of our TV personalities some time ago: On this farm where hunting took place, the tracker (spoorsnyer) had the job of slaughtering the animal after the kill, and as an additional benefit may take the intestines etc for himself.

After observing the tracker for some time, he said to the tracker: "Jonas, I see you are even taking the 'asshole' of the antelope .... do you eat that too?"
Jonas's reply: "Whilst the antelope is living, you may call this the 'asshole'. But when it is dead....I call it meat"

This is loosely translated, as the discussion was held in a different language, but this made me laugh so much I nearly started crying!!!

I suppose....'each to his/her own' is the answer to the thread then.........

[Warrigul]

This discussion makes me remember the story told by one of our TV personalities some time ago: On this farm where hunting took place, the tracker (spoorsnyer) had the job of slaughtering the animal after the kill, and as an additional benefit may take the intestines etc for himself.

After observing the tracker for some time, he said to the tracker: "Jonas, I see you are even taking the 'asshole' of the antelope .... do you eat that too?"
Jonas's reply: "Whilst the antelope is living, you may call this the 'asshole'. But when it is dead....I call it meat"

This is loosely translated, as the discussion was held in a different language, but this made me laugh so much I nearly started crying!!!

I suppose....'each to his/her own' is the answer to the thread then.........

Yep, not much goes to waste in any society, having worked on machinery in a few meat processing places, every time I had proper butchers saveloys I said "love my IWLB's" never told my wife what it stood for until a couple of years ago- Intestine wrapped lips and bums, she doesn't eat them anymore.

Bums are meat, did you know there is actiully a specialist machine in an abbatoir for ringing (cutting the bum out) a carcass, fascinating stuff.

[Grated]

We do a lamb on a spit every once in a while. A particular mate always makes a show out of eating the bum out of the thing

[Rumpig69]

If you can shoot it, you can slow cook it.
The biggest thing to look out for on game is Q Fever through blood contact when gutting,